Culturally Responsive Therapy: Supporting Mental Health Across Cultures

Introduction

Living between cultures brings many unique experiences—new opportunities, challenges, and often, deep personal reflection. For people who have migrated to a new country, these experiences can impact identity, belonging, and emotional well-being. Therapy can offer a valuable space to explore these complex emotions, but it’s most helpful when it respects and understands the cultural background of each person.

Why Culture Matters in Mental Health Therapy.

👉 If you’d like to explore why culture plays such a key role in emotional well-being and therapy, you may find my earlier post helpful: Why Culture Matters in Mental Health Therapy.

Understanding how culture shapes our sense of self and emotional health is the first step. Let's explore how culturally responsive therapy addresses this.

What Is Culturally Responsive Therapy?

Culturally responsive therapy is an approach that honors your cultural background, experiences, and identity throughout the therapeutic process. It goes beyond simply “being aware” of culture—it's about understanding how culture shapes mental health, emotional expression, family dynamics, and coping strategies. It involves cultural humility on the therapist’s part: being open, respectful, and curious about your unique story.

As defined by Sue & Sue (2012) and the American Psychological Association (2017):

“Culturally responsive therapy refers to an approach that recognizes the significant role culture plays in shaping individuals’ experiences, identities, and mental health. It involves tailoring therapeutic practices to respect and integrate clients’ cultural backgrounds, values, and worldviews. This approach encourages cultural humility and ongoing self-reflection in the therapist to provide effective, respectful, and meaningful care.”

For example, a therapist may explore how your cultural background shapes your views on family roles and integrate these insights into how you work together in therapy.

Whether you’re an immigrant, expat, refugee, or someone living between cultures, therapy should feel like a space where your whole identity is welcomed, not something you have to leave at the door.

therapy should feel like a space where your whole identity is welcomed, not something you have to leave at the door. — therapy should feel like a space where **your whole identity is welcomed**, not something you have to leave at the door.

Why Culturally Responsive Therapy Matters

For many, how they experience and express emotional distress is influenced by cultural background...Some cultures focus more on physical (somatic) symptoms; others may prefer indirect communication styles or rely on community and family for decision-making. A culturally responsive therapist works within the client's framework—not imposing a “one size fits all” approach.

For many individuals—whether they have migrated, grown up in bicultural families, or live between different cultural worlds—this can be a profound emotional journey. It often involves identity shifts, feelings of loss, and complex life transitions.

For example, migrants adapting to a new culture may experience challenges that affect mental health, identity, and belonging.

In my post on Migration and Mental Health: How Cultural Adaptation Shapes Well-being, I explore how migration can increase stress, anxiety, and feelings of isolation.

When therapy actively engages with culture, it helps people feel understood—not just as individuals, but within the wider context of their heritage and life journey.

This is where culturally responsive therapy can offer meaningful support—creating a space that truly respects and understands the complexities of living between cultures.

Culturally responsive therapy acknowledges these realities. It creates a therapeutic space that respects where you come from, how you make sense of your experiences, and the strengths you bring from your cultural background. When therapy actively engages with culture, it helps people feel understood—not just as individuals, but within the wider context of their heritage and life journey.

Therapeutic Approaches That Can Be Culturally Adapted

There’s no one-size-fits-all approach to therapy—cultural experiences vary widely, and so do the therapeutic strategies that resonate with individuals. Many evidence-based therapies can be adapted to respect cultural values, traditions, and communication styles. Here are some commonly used approaches that offer meaningful support for migrants and people living across cultures:

1. Narrative Therapy

Helps clients re-author their migration stories—honoring loss, resilience, and hope—and build a stronger sense of identity.

2. Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT)

Encourages flexibility in values and identity while helping people navigate cultural transitions with mindfulness and self-compassion.

3. Culturally Adapted Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT)

Respects cultural beliefs and meaning systems, offering practical tools to manage stress, anxiety, and mood challenges within the client’s cultural context. For example, when working with Chinese clients, a therapist might incorporate cultural values like filial piety (孝, xiào) by framing assertive communication as a means to enhance family harmony. The focus is on promoting open communication and reducing misunderstandings, which aligns with cultural values of family cohesion and interdependence. Similarly, when working with clients from Muslim backgrounds, a therapist might integrate prayer or spiritual reflection as a grounding technique alongside traditional CBT practices. This approach helps align coping strategies with the client’s faith-based values, creating a sense of cultural relevance and comfort.

4. Somatic Approaches

Support healing by addressing how distress is experienced in the body—an approach often important in cultures where emotions are expressed physically.

For example, Tai Chi or Qigong-based breathing exercises can be incorporated to help manage anxiety in a culturally resonant and familiar way. These practices emphasize balance, grounding, and the mind-body connection, offering clients an approach that feels authentic and accessible.

Offers connection and support within familiar cultural or community groups, reducing isolation and fostering belonging.

**Community-Based Group Therapy offers connection and support within familiar cultural or community groups.**

5. Culturally Sensitive Psychoeducation

Provides information about mental health in a way that aligns with cultural understandings of wellness, illness, and healing.

6. Community-Based Group Therapy

Offers connection and support within familiar cultural or community groups, reducing isolation and fostering belonging.

How Culturally Responsive Therapy Builds Resilience and Growth

Culturally responsive therapy helps clients:

Reconnect with their full cultural identity in a supportive, respectful space
Validate cultural strengths—such as spirituality, family ties, and community connections—as powerful resources for healing
Develop coping strategies that make sense within their cultural values and life experiences
Foster belonging and connection, helping them feel at home in both their heritage and their new environment

To make these benefits a reality, therapists need to incorporate certain best practices that ensure therapy is truly culturally responsive.

🚀 In my next post: 'Why Living Between Cultures Feels So Hard—A Practical Guide to Intercultural Communication and Enhancing Competence', I breakdown what an individual's Intercultural Competence looks like.

Best Practices in Culturally Responsive Therapy

Culturally responsive therapy isn’t a single method—it’s a way of working across all therapeutic approaches. At the heart of these practices is cultural humility—an openness to learning from each client's unique experience. Here are some best practices that therapists often follow to ensure culturally sensitive care:

Language and Communication

Therapy in your preferred language (or with interpreters if needed)
Honoring cultural expressions of distress
Respecting communication styles (direct or indirect)

Context and Setting

Offering therapy in culturally comfortable spaces (community centers, religious spaces)
Involving family or community members if helpful
Flexibility in session formats to align with cultural norms

Incorporate religious or spiritual practices as coping strategies

Content and Traditions

Incorporating religious or spiritual practices as coping strategies
Weaving cultural traditions, stories, and rituals into the therapeutic process
Supporting cultural identity through familiar elements like language, food, or music

Therapist-Client Relationship

Building trust through cultural humility and openness
Understanding your migration history and its psychological impact
Addressing experiences of discrimination or systemic barriers
Collaborating with cultural consultants when necessary

Finding a Culturally Responsive Therapist

If you’re seeking therapy, it’s important to find a practitioner who respects and understands cultural identity. You can:

Look for therapists who specialize in cross-cultural or migration-related issues
Ask questions like: “How do you incorporate cultural understanding into therapy?”

Final Thoughts

Living between cultures can be enriching and complex. Therapy that honors your cultural identity can make a real difference—helping you navigate challenges, celebrate your strengths, and find a sense of belonging wherever you are.

There are many practical tools and coping strategies that can support emotional well-being through cultural transitions. These can include mindfulness techniques to manage stress, cognitive reframing to shift perspectives on cultural adaptation, expressive writing to process identity shifts, and grounding exercises to reduce anxiety in unfamiliar environments. Building social connections, whether within your cultural community or with people in your new environment, can also be a key factor in feeling more settled and supported.

If you’re curious about culturally responsive therapy or want to explore support, feel free to reach out or explore the resources on my website.

About Author: Dr Tiffany Leung, UK chartered Psychologist

Dr Tiffany Leung is a psychologist/therapist and intercultural communication specialist. She helps people navigate life between cultures with more clarity and ease. Whether you’re living abroad, working in a global environment, or simply wanting to feel more confident across cultures, this guide is here to support you.

Frequently Asked Questions

❓ What is culturally responsive therapy?

Culturally responsive therapy is an approach that respects and integrates your cultural background, beliefs, and values into the therapeutic process. It acknowledges the important role culture plays in shaping your experiences, identity, and emotional well-being.

❓ How can therapy help with cultural identity struggles?

Therapy can provide a supportive space to explore feelings of belonging, identity shifts, or cultural conflicts. It helps people make sense of their experiences living between cultures and develop coping strategies that honor both their heritage and present lives.

❓ What is culturally adapted CBT?

Culturally adapted Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) is a form of therapy that modifies traditional CBT techniques to fit the client’s cultural context. This may include using culturally meaningful metaphors, addressing culturally specific stressors, and involving family or spiritual practices to support healing.